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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: cabinet · rest · press · chair · tube · march · foot · race

  1. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  2. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  3. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  4. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  5. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  6. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  9. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  10. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  11. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  12. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  13. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  14. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  15. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  16. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  17. Did you ________________ the button?
  18. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  19. What do you think of the new ________________?
  20. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  21. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  22. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  23. I'll be taking the ________________.
  24. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. march — the month
  3. rest — what's left
  4. chair — to sit on
  5. chair — a professorship
  6. race — a contest
  7. race — the arms race
  8. rest — a break
  9. cabinet — a cupboard
  10. foot — a measure
  11. press — a publisher
  12. chair — a leader
  13. tube — in a tire
  14. rest — what's left
  15. foot — part of the body
  16. race — humankind
  17. press — to push
  18. tube — a container
  19. cabinet — ministers
  20. march — the month
  21. foot — the bottom
  22. march — music
  23. tube — the underground
  24. press — newspapers

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com